Los Angeles Airport Gunman Is From New Jersey

Police say 23-year-old Paul Ciancia, man who opened fire with an assault rifle inside a terminal at Los Angeles Airport killing a TSA employee and wounding two others at a terminal checkpoint is from Pennsville, New Jersey.

LATEST:

10:34 p.m. - A law enforcement official tells The Associated Press that Paul Ciancia wrote a rant about killing Transportation Safety Administration workers. A law enforcement official, who was briefed at LAX on the investigation but not authorized to speak publicly, said the gunman was wearing fatigues and carrying a bag containing a hand-written note that said he “wanted to kill TSA and pigs.” The official requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The TSA says in a statement that Gerardo I. Hernandez is the officer who was slain by a gunman who opened fire at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday morning. Two other TSA officers were wounded. The gunman was wounded in a shootout with airport police and taken into custody.

5:35 p.m. -Pennsville Chief Allen Cummings confirms that Paul Ciancia’s father called him early Friday afternoon saying another of his children had received a text message from the suspect “in reference to him taking his own life.” Cummings says the elder Ciancia asked him for help in locating Paul, according to Cummings. The chief says he called Los Angeles police, which sent a patrol car to Ciancia’s apartment. There, two roommates said they had seen him Thursday and that he was fine. Cummings says he told Ciancia’s father that because of the son’s age, he couldn’t take a missing persons report. He says his department had no dealings with the younger Paul Ciancia. A law enforcement official speaking on condition of anonymity identified the suspect as the younger Ciancia.

5:00 p.m. – Ciancia is said to be from Pennsville according to NBC Philadelphia. It is still unclear if he is dead or alive. Ciancia has been living in Los Angeles and texted his brother that he was thinking of committing suicide. His brother called Pennsville Police who then contacted LAPD to request a wellness check. When police stopped by Ciancia was gone but his roommate said there had not been any problems.

4:00 p.m. -The TSA confirmed one of their employees was fatally shot at Los Angeles Airport. “I am deeply saddened to inform you that a TSA employee was shot and killed today while on duty at Los Angeles International Airport. Other TSA employees also were injured in the shooting. … Our thoughts and prayers go out to those who have been injured and their loved ones.”

3:05 p.m. - Police “did not hesitate” to take down the gunman utilizing a scenario they have practiced a number of times according to Los Angeles Airport Police Chief Patrick Gannon. He described the officers’ actions as “heroic”

LAPD Police Chief Charlie Beck would not confirm that the victim was a TSA agent nor confirm any of the victims. The Associated Press says Tim Kauffman, a spokesman for the American Federation of Government Employees in Washington, confirmed that a TSA officer was killed in the incident at Los Angeles International Airport. He said the union’s information comes from their local officials in Los Angeles.

2:59 p.m. -Flights are able to arrive at Los Angeles Airport but at half-capacity. No flights are leaving. It will be a “logictical ballet” to get everyone re-checked in and onto their plane.Some flights headed to Los Angeles were held at their respective terminals around the country.

2:56 p.m. - Lone shooter engaged in gunfire with airport police according to Airport Police Chief Patrick Gannon throwing the airport into chaos. The suspect pulled an assault rifle out of his bag and opened fire in several locations. Police tracked suspect down, shot him in Terminal 3. He was taken into custody. “At this point be believe this was a lone shooter,” he said.

“I heard a popping sound, and everybody was diving for cover,” passenger Robert Perez told CNN. “The TSA said there was a shooting in the terminal and evacuate the building.”At least 100 people came down a staircase. “Everybody started to panic,” Perez said.

Witness Brian Keech said he heard “about a dozen gunshots” from inside the security gate at Terminal 3.

Welcome back to New Jersey 101.5

It appears that you already have an account created within our VIP network of sites on . To keep your points and personal information safe, we need to verify that it's really you. To activate your account, please confirm your password. When you have confirmed your password, you will be able to log in through Facebook on both sites.

*Please note that your points, prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.

Welcome back to New Jersey 101.5

It appears that you already have an account on this site associated with . To connect your existing account just click on the account activation button below. You will maintain your existing VIP profile. After you do this, you will be able to always log in to http://nj1015.com using your original account information.